We're the people experience specialists

Grow your people, grow your business. We’ll support you in supporting your people.

Call us on 0800 300 362
Join the EMA

People experience is HR, supercharged

People experience is HR, supercharged​

Attract

We help you stand out in a crowded market; so the right talent finds you first and chooses you fast.

Engage

Engaged teams deliver better outcomes; we help you create the conditions where people do their best work.

Grow

Growth isn’t just for individuals; we help you scale learning to fuel business momentum.

Retain

We help you keep your best; by building environments where purpose, progress, and belonging thrive.

Attract

We help you stand out in a crowded market; so the right talent finds you first and chooses you fast.

Engage

Engaged teams deliver better outcomes; we help you create the conditions where people do their best work.

Grow

Growth isn’t just for individuals; we help you scale learning to fuel business momentum.

Retain

We help you keep your best; by building environments where purpose, progress, and belonging thrive.

Get in touch to book a consultation

AdviceLine is the gateway to your solutions

Call our Member-only AdviceLine as often as you need. Our in-house team are available to answer your employment relations questions, connect you with lawyers or consultants, and direct you towards relevant services and resources.

0800 300 362

Professional human resources learning and development

Human Resource Management – An Introduction (HR101)

Performance Management (HR 204)

Intro to Supporting People Strengths (PX101)

Intro to Mitigating People Problems (PX102)

View all upcoming HR courses

Outsource your HR to the experts

We’ll manage your HR so you can focus on growing your business – backed by the full suite of EMA services, connections, and expertise.

With subscription plans made to fit your business and flexible, predictable costs, this service comes highly recommended by our clients. Watch the video to learn how Flo and Frankie scaled their business and people with our support.

Request a no-obligation consultation today

Meet the team that helps you excel

The EMA’s People Experience team is your ecosystem of support to attract, engage, grow and retain your people. 

Nick Sheppard

Head of Professional Services

Kathy McCombe

People Experience Service Manager

Rachel Larsen

HR Service Delivery Partner

Drew Prescott

HR Business Partner

Aimee McCullagh

HR Business Partner

Lisa Young

HR Business Partner

Julie Newman

Strategy, Leadership & Transformation Consultant

Summer Zhang

HR Business Partner

Carol Abernathy

HR Consultant and Business Partner

Kirsty Thomas

Culture Organisation and People Development Consultant

Rebecca Agent

Strategy Change and Transformation consultant

Elizabeth Fahey

Change and Transformation Consultant

Ann Lake

HR Business Partner

Jo Calder

HR Business Partner

Karen Stent

Transformation, Culture & People Consultant

Celena Harry

HR Consultant

Get in touch to book a consultation

Check out our useful resources

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FREE RESOURCE

Performance versus Potential Matrix

Download
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Framework

Performance and Development Framework

Purchase
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ARTICLE

The harm of neglecting mental health

Read more
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FREE resource

Managing under-performance at work

Download

Not an EMA Member? That's ok, we can still help.
Enquire today about your options.

Not an EMA Member? That's ok, we can still help.
Enquire today about your options.

Enquire today about EMA Membership
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Mauro Barsi

Head of Legal, Consultancy and General Counsel

Mauro is an experienced advocate for businesses and employers and a trusted advisor when you need it most. He brings a powerful mix of practical knowledge in Employment Relations and Human Resources, litigation experience; and time spent as a senior leader in both the public and private sectors, all to help resolve your issues quickly and effectively. 

Having worked in-house with organisations to manage growth and transformation projects, his broad business management knowledge means he brings an overarching approach to issues. Mauro helps businesses shape their organisations through strategy, bargaining, restructuring and the implementation of new people structures, through to managing personal grievances, investigations, and employment disputes.

Kathy McCombe

Kathy has over 30 years of experience in client relationship management.
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Her strong interpersonal and communications skills enable her to build and maintain relationships with clients. Along with her ability to lead and her passion for providing outstanding service the outcome is providing continual exceptional customer service.

Rachel Larsen

Throughout her professional journey—whether in operational roles, as an HR partner, or in a self-employed capacity—Rachel’s passion for fostering people-centric cultures has kept people at the heart of everything she does.

Working across both SMEs and corporate environments as a HR Generalist, she is known for her supportive and empathetic approach, thriving on building strong relationships and empowering leaders to manage their teams with confidence. She embraces continuous improvement—both personally and within organizations—leveraging data and real-world insights to create meaningful impact. With a natural curiosity and problem-solving mindset, Rachel is a trusted, down-to-earth partner for businesses seeking generalist or project-based HR support.

Drew Prescott

Drew graduated in 2018 with a Bachelor of Arts majoring in psychology and criminology where she then joined the EMA as an HR Intern before moving into an Employer Advisor and People & Culture Advisor role.
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In 2022, Drew completed her Postgraduate Diploma in Industrial and Organisational Psychology. Drew has since gained significant experience in partnering with EMA and businesses across all aspects of HR including restructuring, performance frameworks & wellbeing.
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Aimee Graham

Employer Advisor

Aimee joined the EMA in September 2022 as a part of the People & Capability Team, where she led the Talent Acquisition function and provided project-based work for our People Experience Team.

In May 2024, Aimee was seconded into an Employer Advisor role as part of the AdviceLine team to provide employment relations advice to Members.

Lisa Young

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Lisa is an accomplished HR generalist and small business owner with a Postgraduate Diploma in Human Resources Management and over 10 years of HR experience across a range of industries, including technology, media, healthcare, trades, and retail.
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Having worked with both large corporates and small businesses, she is passionate about partnering with leaders to foster strong, compliant work environments and high performing teams. Lisa draws on her extensive knowledge to guide businesses through HR challenges, enhance workplace culture, and align HR strategies with business goals to drive sustainable growth.

Julie Newman

Julie is an executive people leader, inspiring and driving transformational change for employees so they can serve customers and communities better and realise their own goals. 

She has over 20 years’ experience supporting individuals, as well as government and private organisations to thrive in highly disruptive environments and is passionate about employee experiences and leadership capability. Julie believes that great employee experience comes down to leadership and is passionate about developing leadership capability in New Zealand. Julie has a background in organisational psychology and is a qualified coach, helping leaders and employees prepare for an exciting future.

Summer Zhang

Summer currently serves as HR Business Partner for EMA, with expertise in employee relations, recruitment, process implementation, payroll, and data analysis. She gained master’s degree in economics from University of Southern California, starting her career as a Financial Analyst but found her true passion lies in HR when working for Apple Inc (Retail).

Over the years, she has gained solid HR experience from diverse industries including retail, manufacturing, and education. She is committed to providing strategic insights to drive organizational success and fostering positive workplace relationships.

Carol Abernathy

Carol is an experienced recruiter, HR director, business consultant and small business owner with diverse skillsets and knowledge in HR, operations and finance.
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Tertiary qualified with a B.Sc (Psych), Grad Dip Bus (HR), Post Grad Dip Bus (Finance) from the University of Auckland. Currently carrying out a variety of HR and recruitment projects with selected clients across NZ and Australia.

Kirsty Thomas

Kirsty Thomas has both corporate and consulting experience in Human Resources roles for a range of organisations in the for-profit, not- for-profit, educare sector, government, and social enterprise sectors.


She has lived and worked in the UK, the Netherlands, Singapore, and New Zealand. She has a Masters degree in Industrial and Organisational Psychology from the University of Canterbury, alongside a range of qualifications in coaching, psychometric tools, and human-centred design.


She currently runs her own consulting practice; prior roles have included Chief People and Culture Officer at Toitū Envirocare and Head of Strategy – People and Organisation for ASB.

Rebecca Agent

Rebecca Agent is a seasoned consulting and advisory professional with over 20 years of experience driving enterprise transformation, strategic execution, and operational excellence across diverse industries.

As a consultant working with the Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA) New Zealand and its members, Rebecca brings a pragmatic, solutions-focused approach to supporting organisations in navigating complex business challenges.

With a background spanning strategy, change management, business transformation, operational performance and sustainability, Rebecca specialises in helping organisations optimise their structures, processes, and people strategies to improve efficiency, resilience, and growth.

Elizabeth Fahey

Elizabeth is a change leader who has experience both in New Zealand and
internationally across diverse industries in organisations of varying sizes.


With a strong foundation in organisational development, training, HR and leadership, she has 20 years experience in organisational change and transformation, simplifying and guiding teams through complexity with a pragmatic, calm and collaborative approach combined with strategic insight. Committed to empowering individuals and unlocking their potential, Elizabeth also works as a retirement coach, helping individuals and organisations navigate transitions with purpose and confidence.

Ann Lake

With over 25 years experience, and Degree Qualified, through the University of Auckland Business School, Ann has transformed numerous organisations’ people programmes across a range of industries, including IT, health, trades, construction, health, social services, and transport.

Ann develops long-term relationships by sharing her knowledge and coaching leaders at all levels in large and medium businesses.

Commercially astute with a robust understanding of best business modelling, Ann has a particular interest in high-growth organisations and specialises in developing robust people and culture frameworks, including talent management, onboarding, performance management, and training and development.

Ann has a love for employment relations and adding value to the leaders she works with in the trickiest of situations.

Jo Calder

HR Business Partner

Jo Calder is a senior HR leader with 20+ years driving impactful people strategies across diverse New Zealand industries. She specialises in organisational design, leadership development, and culture change that deliver measurable results.

Jo is known for being adaptive, outcome focussed and partnering with leaders to solve complex challenges, improve engagement, reduce turnover, and advance diversity and inclusion.

Her achievements include delivering lasting transformational change, building high performing teams, slashing operational costs, achieving gender pay equity, leading union negotiations, and sustaining high engagement through major events and crises.

Jo is a trusted advisor who is energetic, pragmatic, down-to-earth, connecting easily with people at all levels, always delivering with integrity and a sense of humour.

Karen Stent

Karen brings over 20 years of experience in recruitment, HR, and coaching across diverse industries. As both an HR Business Partner and a leadership and culture coach,
she supports organisations to build capability, strengthen culture, and align people strategies with business goals, bringing a strategic and solutions-focused approach.

A career highlight includes leading the creation of an award-winning workplace, recognised as one of New Zealand’s Top 10 Best Workplaces and the recipient of multiple awards for excellence in learning, development, and culture initiatives.

Karen’s collaborative style, calm presence, ability to build trust, and commitment to excellence make her a valued partner in driving meaningful workplace transformation.

Celena Harry

HR Consultant

Celena is passionate about helping leaders and business owners create environments where people thrive.

Over the past 20 years she has worked with individuals, teams, and organisations to strengthen leadership capability and build constructive workplace cultures that delivered commercial and customer experience improvement. Most recently, Celena was Chief People Officer at Mitre 10 New Zealand where she led the redesign and improved delivery of HR and people experience services for the cooperative including performance management, HR technology, induction and training, health safety and wellbeing, internal communication, built new capability to support organisational transformation and empowered leaders to thrive.

Prior to this she held senior HR positions in a number of well-known brands. Her experience ranges across retail, technology, telecommunications, energy, and education — supporting both large corporates, small business owners and community-based organisations. She also mentors several mid-career level HR professionals in New Zealand and is Chartered Member of HRNZ.